by Joanna Bourne is one of the finest romances I've ever read.
Annique carries a host of horrid secrets. The most crucial are the Albion plans--Napolean's plans for invading England. This knowledge puts her life in jeopardy.
Really, it's right up there with Lord of Scoundrels. The prose is wonderful, the setting--Bonaparte's France, then England--compelling. Annique's many layers make her a worthy heroine who runs afoul of her own spy ring and lands in enemy hands.
Bourne unveils the complications slowly. Readers learn by inches that Annique's loyalties are torn apart. I didn't know until the last page how it would all shake down, but every page has symmetry and sense.
I admire the way Grey/Robert was shown in his many facets. He began the journey as Annique's bitter enemy bent on revenge. Bourne didn't feel compelled to use many nonsensical gyrations between the two protagonists that I've seen in other historical romances.
I'm also reading Outlander by Diana Gabaldon, which contains plenty of nonsense. It's fabulous but weird. Not a comfortable read. I'm in deep enough that I "need" to read not only this volume, but the next and the next. But I won't like it, or myself at some junctures.
In contrast, if you're a romance fan, you mustn't miss Spymaster's Lady. I understand the author has another coming out soon. I just hope she will write more, and faster. Her only other book was written in 1983.
At one place, Grey urges Annique to "grow old with me." There are references to children and grandchildren. She is afraid to think of the future or trust it. I like the places in the book that hint at themes other than being young and beautiful, the expectation that love will last. The idea that they are not just in the relationship for the physical pull. Too many books lately have the underlying premise that without great sex,there would be no great love, that great sex is induced by flawless looks.
While there's beauty and attraction here, Annique's blindness means that her yen for Grey comes from his character and conversation. "You are like a beautiful animal," she says, without knowing what he looks like except that he's sizeable.
Both books (Outlander and Spymaster) deserves an R rating, however, for violence and sexuality. Not for the kiddies.
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